Heather stood up and stretched, her upper back popping as she moved for the first time since she had arrived in Gil's room. Gil was off getting an MRI, and Heather wandered off to get some coffee, she felt exhausted. She looked at her watch and noticed that it was 12:15 pm. She realized that she probably should eat something to keep up her strength. She headed down to the cafeteria and got herself a small coffee and a Rueben sandwich. She ate calmly, taking note of her surroundings. She noticed that there was a clear delineation of locations within the cafeteria. The separation didn't seem conscious, just instinctive. She noticed that the doctors sat with each other, and the staff seemed to interpose themselves between the doctors and the patients and patients' families. She stood up to leave, having finished her sandwich, when she noticed the doctors she'd met before sitting nearby. Doctors Foreman, Cameron, and Chase were sitting at the same table, talking and laughing, but she noticed that Dr. Cameron kept stealing glances over to a table in the corner near a television set. She looked over at the table, and there were Doctors Wilson and House. Heather bussed her tray, taking a look at Dr. Cameron through the shift in angles. She noticed exactly what she'd seen before. She noticed longing. She suspected the longing was for Dr. House, since Dr. Wilson was married and Dr. Cameron seemed too nice to break up a marriage like that. She looked over at the other table, and, while she couldn't get a look at the eyes of Dr. House, she noticed that he also kept stealing glances back to the table where the three young doctors were sitting.


Cameron ate lunch with Chase and Foreman, laughing and chatting with them while Chase regaled them with tales from seminary. She also kept sneaking furtive glances over at House. Chase, of course, was oblivious to her actions or if he did notice, he didn't care. Foreman, however, kept glancing at her with a strange look on his face. Cameron didn't say anything though, but she noticed a movement that seemed a little out of place out of the corner of her eye. She looked over and noticed Ms. Kessler looking at their table, then shifting her eyes to look over at House and Wilson. Cameron noticed the other woman nod almost imperceptibly at her before she turned and left the cafeteria with a small smile on her full lips. Cameron started slightly when she felt a poke on her arm. She turned and looked at Foreman, "What?" Her voice was quiet.

"Who was that woman?" His voice was equally quiet.

"Oh, that was Ms. Kessler, she's our patient's girlfriend."

"Why was she looking at us?"

"I don't know."

"Oh. Alright," he raised his voice back to normal conversation levels. "I got something to tell you guys. Tonight, I'm leaving to go to a neurology conference. Cuddy's making me go."

Chase shifted his gaze to look at Foreman, "How long will you be gone?"

"Let's see . . . the conference starts tomorrow, and it's four days of lectures and discussions. Then, I'll probably leave the next day and come back to work the day after, so I should be gone for about six days, barring any unforeseen circumstances. Why?"

"Just wanted to know how long I'd have to be the one to bear the brunt of House's remarks." Cameron and Foreman laughed at his remark, but the laughter was cut short when all three of their pagers went off. They each looked at the message, which told them that the MRI results were in as were the lab results. Cameron, having already bussed her tray and returned to chat with Chase and Foreman (and watch House, though she wouldn't admit it to anyone, least of all House himself), left first. As she passed by the patient's room on the way to the third floor lab, she noticed that Ms. Kessler was back in the patient's room, but was now reading a book. Cameron looked at the other woman for a few seconds, trying to understand this woman, and wondering what was going on with her earlier in the cafeteria. Ms. Kessler all of a sudden looked up from her book and met Cameron's eyes, a knowing smile gracing her full lips. Cameron shook herself and resumed her trek to the lab, wondering what exactly could be going through the other woman's mind.


Heather returned to Gil's room, deciding to call Annette and then to get some reading done. She dialed Annette's number, and waited for the other woman to pick up. The phone rang six times before Annette answered, "Hello." She sounded out of breath.

"Annette, it's Heather. Have I caught you at a bad time?"

"No, you haven't. I'm just winded." Heather smiled as she heard a muffled whimper in the background, followed by a short cracking noise and a scream.

"Ah. A client?"

"Yeah, he was cleaning my house and missed dusting the blades of my ceiling fans."

Heather chuckled softly, then turned serious. "Remember that offer you mentioned when you called last time?"

"You mean bringing in a couple of other submissives? Yes, of course I remember."

"I think tomorrow I'll take you up on that offer. I'm going stir-crazy here at the hospital with nothing to do."

"Oh, you're actually in Princeton?"

"Yes. Dr. House agreed to consult on the case, so we came out here."

"Well, how about I come by the hospital tomorrow at around 10:00. I'll find you and then you and I can go see those submissives."

"Sounds great. I'll see you tomorrow."

"Bye." Heather hung up the phone, reached into her bag, and pulled out a hardcover copy of Thomas Hobbes' Leviathan. She read a few pages before she felt someone looking at her. She looked up from her book, expecting Dr. Wilson or a nurse. Instead it was Dr. Cameron, standing outside Gil's room with a puzzled look on her face. Heather met the other woman's eyes and allowed a knowing smile to grace her features as she recalled this young doctor sneaking glances at Dr. House. This Dr. Cameron truly was smitten with the man, she couldn't hide it, and Heather was willing to bet that almost the entire hospital knew it. Heather watched the other woman turn abruptly and walk down the corridor. Heather shook her head and went back to her reading. It wasn't her concern.